


Ritual

by GemmaRose



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Dubious Consent, Dubious Consentacles, Minor Allura/Shiro (Voltron), Other, Tentacle Sex, how tf is shiro/tentacles already a tag, just surprised, not judging
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-12-27
Updated: 2016-12-27
Packaged: 2018-09-12 07:17:19
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,518
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9062050
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/GemmaRose/pseuds/GemmaRose
Summary: In order to seal an alliance with the quvlom of Xiint, Allura and Shiro agree to feed something called a kinath with their quintessence. Allura, however, neglects to tell Shiro exactly what he just signed up for.Crossposted from the Voltron kink meme.





	

“You what?!” Hunk yelled over the comms, making Shiro wince.

“It’s nothing to worry about.” he said, exhaling slowly through his nose so he wouldn’t sigh. He’d guessed that the others wouldn’t like this, but as leader it was his job to keep them safe. Plus, they were all still teenagers. Barely adults, if at all. He wasn’t really sure when most of their birthdays were. “The quvlom said it’ll be uncomfortable at most.”

“Then why not let one of us do it?” Pidge huffed.

“Because if this kinath is anything like the one I met ten thousand years ago, it’s not an ordeal I would wish on anyone.” Allura said smoothly, frowning as the shuttle’s video screen. “I would rather not involve any of you, but having seen the kinath I do not doubt the quvlom’s leaders when they say it will take two to safely supply an appropriate amount of quintessence.”

“Okay, but why do we have to stay on the castle?” Keith scowled. “The least we can do is be there in case something goes wrong.”

“Can’t believe I’m agreeing with Keith, but yeah, we should be there.” Lance nodded his head.

“No.” Shiro said firmly. “You four are staying on the castle, where Coran can keep an eye on you. The last thing we need is Lance getting arrested and making these guys call off the treaty.”

“Why do you always assume _I’m_ the one who’s gonna get arrested?” Lance exclaimed, throwing his hands in the air. “Keith’s the guy who can’t go three days without picking a fight!”

“Yeah, but you’ve been kidnapped the most.” Pidge grinned at Lance.

“I have not! Hunk, back me up buddy.”

“Sorry, bro, but Pidge is right.” Hunk grinned sheepishly.

“A _hem_.” Allura cleared her throat, and the Paladins on the castle turned their attention back to the screen. “Once Shiro and I have completed the transfer of quintessence, we will contact you again. Until then, Coran is in charge. Understood?”

The Paladins looked at each other.

“Understood?” Allura repeated, her eyebrows drawing down.

This time she was met with a chorus of “Yes Princess” and “Yes Allura”, and Shiro smiled slightly.

“Don’t worry. Their red dwarf sun is only above the horizon for a few hours at this latitude, so we won’t be out of contact for very long. Over and out.”

Allura hit the end call button before he could, and Shiro leaned back in his seat with a sigh. True, sunrise to sunset wasn’t long when measuring by this planet’s second sun, but he still wasn’t looking forward to spending plural hours getting the quintessence drained from his body. Even if it wasn’t a fatal amount, it wasn’t going to be pleasant.

\---

Shiro fidgeted with the tie on the front of his robe. It was made of several layers of thin next-to-sheer white fabric sewn together at the hems, and the way it draped over him was reminiscent enough of a kimono that the right-over-left wrapping made him uneasy. Allura, though, walked with all her usual grace and confidence as their small escort of quvlom lead them up a set of stone steps. She had pulled her hair back into a low bun and a few strands had already come loose, drifting around her shoulders in the gentle breeze. Shiro deliberately kept his eyes from wandering any lower than that. The semi-sheerness of the pale fabric was evident against her dark skin, and he wasn’t going to ogle the woman who was, for all intents and purposes, his CO.

The big rock Allura had identified as a kinath was still a fair distance away from them, across a stretch of empty grassland, and Shiro wondered how they were meant to get there. The platform at the top of the steps had railings on the left and right, but in front it was bare. Were they supposed to jump down and walk? He didn’t doubt that he and Allura were capable of landing unharmed, they were only about twenty feet off the ground after all, but the robes wouldn’t survive a rolling landing much less a trek through knee-high grass. One of the quvlom stepped up to a metallic disc, and ran its claw-hand along a groove near its edge.

Shiro’s skin prickled at the sound, every hair standing on end, and then a deep groaning noise drew his attention back to the rock. A wedge was separating from the main mass, revealing a dark reddish cavern inside as it fell towards them. So this was a kinath, stony skin and fleshy interior, like a geode which fed on quintessence. Shiro almost chuckled at that. He’d have to tell Lance and Pidge about this later. An alien flesh geode which fed on a planet’s energy like a parasite unless it was regularly supplied with life energy by the inhabitants? It sounded like something straight out of an old sci-fi book.

The piece of the kinath which extended towards them was covered in unevenly sized bumps, and Shiro glanced at Allura. She gave him a reassuring smile, and stepped off the platform onto one of the round lumps. Okay, so stepping on those wouldn’t hurt the kinath. He followed her out onto the pinkish-red walkway, and after a minute of brisk walking they were about halfway there.

“It will be dark inside, once this closes behind us.” Allura said softly, not looking back at him. “With a kinath of this size, we will be in complete darkness until it begins the transfer.”

“I can handle it.” Shiro replied, matching her volume. “I never would’ve become an astronaut if I was scared of the dark.”

A smile flickered across Allura’s face, and then they were in the shadowy interior of the kinath. Shiro tilted his head back, and felt a brief rush of vertigo when he realized he couldn’t make out the top of the area he’d be spending the next few hours in. The entire interior seemed to be textured like the triangle they’d walked across to get here, uneven lumps covering the floor and walls. In a way, he was grateful the quvlom had insisted that the kinath needed at least two people to provide quintessence. He wouldn’t wish hours and hours of pitch black solitude on anyone, let alone having to spend that time sitting or lying on this strange surface.

A loud, bone-rattling sound suddenly started behind him, and Shiro startled as he spun on his heel. The action almost made him lose his balance, and he staggered back a step as he took in the sight before him. The walkway was lifting back up, sealing them in. He looked over his shoulder, and saw Allura still walking calmly towards the middle of the fleshy living geode. Right, nothing to get worked up over. Just a simple donation of quintessence. He exhaled, and walked over to where the lifting flap joined with the one next to it which curved up into darkness. There were bubbles going right up to the edge on both sides, such that when the kinath was shut, it would be impossible to tell where the seam was.

“It’s easier if you’re closer to the center, you know.”

Shiro turned around and offered Allura a grin. “Sorry. My roomie at the garrison was a theoretical xenobiology student. Guess some of that curiosity rubbed off on me.” and some of his curiosity was far less than scientific, but like hell was he going to tell Allura that. He was maybe halfway to the center when the grinding noise ceased and complete darkness fell. The uneven floor began to shift under his feet, and he slowed to a stop. “Allura?” he blinked, hoping for even the smallest spark of light, but of course there was nothing.

Something wrapped around his bare ankle, and Shiro cried out in wordless shock as he tried to pull away. His arm lit up on reflex, and he let out a string of loud curses in all three languages he knew. There was a tentacle winding up his leg, a dull fleshy pink even in the purple light of his arm.

“Shiro!” Allura cried out, and he broke free of the horrified paralysis to look up. Allura was only illuminated dimly, but he could see that she was struggling against the tentacles which had sprung up around her. Every bump, lump, and bubble was unfolding to reveal another writhing appendage, and Shiro swung his arm down to free his leg. Why had they agreed to this? There was no way this could end well, no way at all. He’d cut down anything that tried to grab him, get Allura free, and get them both out of here.

“Stop!”

Shiro froze, his hand less than an inch from the tentacle winding up his leg. Allura had broken free and was hurrying towards him, white robe billowing as she moved with a deliberate speed through the maze of unfolding appendages.

“Don’t hurt it.” she said firmly. “This is how kinath take quintessence from living beings.” she reached for his arm, and he immediately deactivated its burning glow. Her fingers wrapped around his forearm, and brought it up towards his chest. “It may be uncomfortable at first, but this kinath is well cared for. It will not need more quintessence than we can provide.”

Another tentacle wrapped around his other leg, and Shiro shuddered at the feel of it on his skin. It was unnaturally smooth, coiling up his leg without any resistance. “You said you met one, ten thousand years ago?” Shiro said, trying to ground himself by focusing on Allura’s hand around his forearm.

“Yes. It was much younger than this one, on a planet without any sentient life.” her other hand landed on his cheek as the tentacles lifted them up, and he inhaled deeply. Just breathe, he wasn’t in any danger, Allura wasn’t in any danger, they were just giving some energy to this weird alien parasite so it wouldn’t kill the planet. “Its walls were thin enough to let some light through, and I could’ve uprooted it to hold in my hands. It was hard to believe something so cute would one day grow up to destroy its home planet if left unchecked.” they stopped in mid-air, and Shiro inhaled sharply as Allura’s hands were pulled away.

“My tutor brought a young bluefie to feed it.” Allura continued, as calm as ever. Shiro swallowed down the rising panic as the tentacles unwrapped his robe and peeled it away from his body, and tried to focus on his voice. “It was the first time I’d seen the transfer of quintessence for myself. It was quite beautiful, actually.” her fingertips brushed high on his cheek, then her palm landed on his nose.

Shiro couldn’t help it, he chuckled. “That’s my face.”

“I gathered.” Allura sounded like she was smiling, and her hands landed on his cheeks. “Are you okay?”

Shiro nodded, and lifted his flesh and blood hand to cover hers. “Just, keep talking? It helps if I can know you’re there.”

“I can do that.” Allura smiled, and Shiro blinked. He could see her smiling. He could see. Where was the light coming from? He looked up, side to side, and all he saw was the dull pink of countless tentacles. It kinda reminded him of that scene in Hercules where Herc was falling through all the hydra’s heads.

“Oh, I didn’t know it could do that.” Allura said, looking genuinely surprised. She also looked, well, very naked now that Shiro’s eyes were back on her. There were two tentacles wrapped around her legs, keeping them moderately spread like Shiro’s were, but where he just had tentacles which threaded under his arms from behind and curled around the front of his shoulders to meet behind his neck, Allura had a third one sliding underneath her breasts to lift them away from her ribs. Shiro quickly looked away, face heating. She was naked. She was naked and she’d definitely seen him _look_ and oh dear gods he was naked too.

“I wonder if all kinath can do this.” Allura mused, and when Shiro glanced at her again he completely failed at keeping his eyes on her face. Another tentacle had started playing with her breasts, this one gleaming with some liquid which left Allura’s skin shiny where it had passed. The patch of white between her legs was looking darker now, wet, and Shiro looked quickly away again. This was inappropriate. This was so inappropriate. She was a princess, he was her Paladin, their roles were very clear. But she was also beautiful, and he was only human.

Allura’s eyes fluttered shut as a tentacle prodded between her legs, and Shiro bit his lower lip as he watched it slowly slide in. She sighed, and let her head hang back. “I’m not sure why the quvlom said it would be uncomfortable.” she said, voice as even and conversational as ever. “It’s quite gentle.” Shiro swallowed, and lowered his arms as much as he could, which wasn’t far at all. He’d definitely be dreaming about this for months, the sight of Allura contentedly letting a tentacle slide into her body while another one played with her breasts, rubbing back and forth over firm dark nipples.

Something cool and slimy prodded at his ass, and Shiro’s attention immediately left Allura. He yelped, and tried to squirm away from the touch. No, no, no way was he getting fucked by a tentacle. His life was _not_ that weird. Watching his crush/CO get fucked by tentacles was already pushing it.

The tentacles around his legs tightened, and he cried out in pain. Then the tentacles under his arms surged forward, and with the new length the ends behind his neck wrapped around it. He grabbed at them and tried to pull, but more lashed around his forearms and kept him from getting any real purchase. No, no this wasn’t happening, not aga- no, he couldn’t- not in front of- no- “ **No!** ” he managed to rasp out, struggling for all he was worth.

“Shiro? Shiro!” Allura’s hand landed on his left elbow, and Shiro nearly sobbed. “Shiro, look at me. _Look at me_.” her fingers curled around his elbow, and he glanced at her. Her eyes looked pink and purple in the strange light, but they were focused with a familiar intensity. “You’re safe.” her other hand grabbed his prosthetic arm by the wrist. “I’m here. You’re safe.”

“I can’t.” he choked out as she brushed the tentacles off of his throat. “I’m sorry, I-”

“It’s okay.” Allura said softly. “The kinath means nothing by this. It just needs to bring our quintessence into resonance with its own.” her hands moved to cup his cheeks, drawing their faces closer together. “You’re safe. I’m safe. Coran is watching the rest of the team.” her thumbs brushed under his eyes wiping away a few tears which had escaped without his realizing. “You’re doing so well, Shiro. I couldn’t have asked for anyone better to accompany me in this ritual.”

The tentacle prodding at his ass slipped in, and Shiro shuddered. It felt strange, but good. The slime tingled pleasantly on his skin, and as the tentacle began to fuck into him he let his head hang forward against Allura’s.

“How do you feel?” one of her hands carded gently through his hair.

“I can breathe.” Shiro said after a moment.

“Breathing is good.” Allura said, her voice soft and reassuring. “The kinath will get bolder as it learns your anatomy, but just keep breathing. The chemicals in its secretions should help you relax.”

Shiro sucked in a breath through his teeth, and it came back out as a moan when the tentacle exploring his ass brushed up against something sensitive. The burst of pleasure was briefly accompanied by a flash of a stomach-turning memory, but it vanished as the tentacle pressed against that spot deliberately. Shiro panted, hips jerking back helplessly as the tentacle began hammering his prostate, and another tentacle came up to wrap around his dick. The first touch was enough to push him over the edge, and he came with a scream as the tentacles working him only barely slowed down.

“Shiro, are you alright?” Allura gasped, and Shiro forced himself to nod. Words were escaping him at the moment, nodding still worked. Allura sighed, and Shiro squirmed as the tentacle in his ass abandoned his prostate to just straight up fuck him, rocking his dick into the curled grip of the tentacle wrapped around it. It felt good, no pain or discomfort, just raw sensation.

“Shiro? Talk to me.” Allura sounded pretty insistent, considering Shiro could see the tentacle between her legs pumping at an impressive speed. The one toying with her breasts had been replaced by two thinner ones which were each manipulating one of her nipples, leaving wide smears of glistening slime spread over her perfect skin.

“‘Bout what?” he frowned, trying to gather his thoughts as he grew hard again.

“Anything.” Allura said breathlessly. “Whatever’s on your mind. Just don’t drift off, or the kinath might-”

“Feels good.” Shiro moaned, letting his eyes slide shut. “Really good.”

“Good. Keep talking, Shiro. Tell me what it feels like.”

“Feels like a threesome.” Shiro panted. “But better.” another tentacle traced his asshole, and Shiro rocked back against it. He could take it, take more. The tentacle in him seemed to pulse, and then it withdrew and the new one plunged in with the most obscene squelching noise he’d even heard. The tentacle around his dick tightened, and Shiro keened as he came again.

“So big.” he panted, when the afterglow was fading. “‘s so big. Almost can’t-” the tentacle struck his prostate, and Shiro gasped. “Can’t take it.” he glanced around for her, and realized she was below him. The tentacles had positioned Allura on her back below him, in such a way that he could perfectly see the tentacles fucking into her. There were three of them, all pistoning away at different rates, and Shiro moaned as the one wrapped around his cock began to tighten.

“Keep going.” Allura panted, but all Shiro could muster was a moan as more of the tentacle slime was pumped into him. It leaked out around the base of the tentacle every time it drew back for another vicious strike at his prostate, and made the filthiest sound with each violent thrust. When he regained the ability for coherent thought, Allura had been lifted up to lie on her back almost directly in front of him. She was writhing in her restraints, fucking herself onto the three tendrils working her, and then she let out the most unearthly sound Shiro had heard in his roughly two years in space.

Dark fluid gushed out from between her legs, staining her white pubic hair some dark colour which the dim light picked out as violently red, and then it didn’t stop. Allura went quiet after the initial burst, but she was still coming and still rocking her hips to take the tentacles deeper and Shiro had never seen anything so hot in his entire life. He came with a curse, and a few long seconds later the tentacle pulled out of his ass. The ones in Allura withdrew as well, and Shiro whined as new tentacles prodded at him. A fat one slipped between Allura’s legs, and she whimpered as it pressed into her but still bucked her hips up to take it deeper faster.

Shiro watched, transfixed, as the tentacle pressed deeper and deeper until it finally seemed to stick. Allura was gasping, breathless half-words streaming from her mouth that his translator wasn’t catching, but she was coming again and Shiro knew he’d be remembering that sound in his bunk at night for a few days at the very least. Then two slender tentacles slid into his ass, and a third prodded at his lips. He moaned as one of the ones up his butt jabbed his prostate, and the third tentacle took that as permission to dive into his mouth.

The slime tasted vaguely metallic, but not in an unpleasant way. It tasted mostly sweet, and when the tip released a burst into his mouth Shiro sucked it down. He’d declined to try the local delicacies offered at the negotiations beyond a polite nibble, since the majority of it seemed to be variants of something similar to haggis and the mere thought of that made his stomach turn mutinously, and come to think of it he hadn’t eaten much breakfast either.

The tentacle in his mouth prodded at the back of his throat, and Shiro sucked on it as encouragingly as he knew how. He wasn’t sure how he knew the specifics of giving a blowjob, but he was pretty sure that was a memory best left for another time. Preferably never. Another squirt of sweet slime in his mouth coincided with a jab against his prostate, and Shiro moaned. How much longer were they going to be in here? Did he even care? Everything felt so good, and when he opened his eyes he could see Allura enjoying herself. Coran had the rest of the team under control. He could just, relax.

\---

After a while, the tentacles began to glow. Shiro paused in sucking off the tentacle in his mouth, and his jaw fell open as he watched every single thing in sight light up. Even Allura was glowing a little bit, though she was bright cyan blue instead of the dull pink of the tentacles. Shiro looked down at himself, and was distantly surprised to see he was glowing too. His skin gave off a pale gold light, or rather, something pale gold and vaguely gaseous was hanging around his skin. Allura’s light began to dim after a few seconds, the tentacles holding her turning bright and purpley, and Shiro glanced at the tentacles around his own limbs. They were shining a very pretty rose gold, dazzlingly bright compared to the dull fleshy pink of the other tentacles, and Shiro had to shut his eyes and look away.

His feet touched the ground, and when the tentacles released him he promptly collapsed to his hands and knees. His entire body felt boneless and strange, like it didn’t quite belong to him, and he slid down to lie on his side. Allura was splayed out on her back not too far away, and Shiro was still trying to get his hands to feel like they belonged on the ends of his arms when she pushed herself to her feet. Their colours danced over her skin, pink mixed with cyan and pale gold shining in the long slicks of slime on her skin.

“Shiro, are you alright?” she asked, her voice pitched low to avoid breaking the peaceful silence of the flesh geode’s interior cavern. He groaned, and propped himself up on one elbow. Words, he had to say something, Allura was expecting him to give an answer.

“‘m fine.” he managed, hopefully in English. Allura relaxed slightly, and Shiro let his eyes drift shut. A few seconds later, something was laid over him.

“You won’t want to be nude when we leave.” Allura said, her voice still soft.

Shiro prised his eyes open, and tried to marshal his thoughts back into order. He couldn’t let himself fall asleep, he had to be alert and ready to protect Allura and the younger Paladins. He managed to push himself up into a sitting position, and gritted his teeth. His stomach hurt, like the time he’d tried to eat a whole sheet cake on a dare but worse. He pulled his robe on blindly, and tied it as firmly as he could. His mind was finally starting to clear now that his body no longer felt like it belonged to someone else, and he grimaced at the feeling of the thin white fabric clinging to his damp skin.

“Wish this was thicker.” he muttered, glaring at his arm through the sheer clinging fabric. Knowing the others, they’d probably convinced Coran to let them come down and be there when he and Allura came out. He’d done a pretty good job so far of protecting them, hiding exactly how bad his missing year had been, but this stupid robe wouldn’t cover anything. All his scars would be fully visible, including the ones which he no longer tried to remember getting. They would see how badly he’d been broken, how badly he was still broken, and then- then-

“Shiro?” Allura’s damp hands cupped his cheeks, and her forehead pressed against his. “Stay with me, Shiro. Stay with me. Breathe. Can you do that?”

Shiro nodded, and matched Allura’s slow, deliberate inhale and exhale.

“Can you tell me what’s wrong, or do you need something?” Allura slid one hand down to stroke his shoulder, her touch gentle and grounding.

“They’ll see.” he rasped out after a minute, gesturing vaguely at his scars.

“They won’t care.” Allura said, her voice carefully controlled. “They’ve seen worse than your scars.” the hand on his shoulder stilled and tightened, forcing all of his attention to her. “Your scars do not define you.” she said firmly, eyes locking with his. “You are a Paladin of Voltron, and a human, and a caretaker. Let those things define you.” the hand on his shoulder slid down to rest over his heart. “Let this define you.”

Shiro grinned, and Allura leaned in to press a kiss to his cheek. “Ready to leave this place?”

“Yeah.” he nodded, and let Allura pull him to his feet. He swayed, and a groan pulled free of his throat.

“Is something wrong?” Allura asked, freeing her hair from the remains of its low bun and twisting it back into submission. as one of the walls started to emit a low groaning noise.

“Just, full.” Shiro grimaced, pressing a hand to his stomach. “I think I’m gonna barf.”

“No, no.” Allura closed the distance between them with a few quick strides, sliding an arm around the back of Shiro’s shoulders to hold him upright. “Not inside the kinath.” she said hurriedly. “Can you bear it until we reach the chambers with our things?”

Shiro nodded, and let Allura guide him towards the lowering wall which would soon become their walkway. The other Paladins were not, in fact, present. A sizable gathering of quvlom were, though, and Shiro couldn’t help blushing as many of them openly stared at him. It had been a long time since anyone saw his naked body, and he couldn’t help but wonder what they saw when they looked at him. A gladiator? A victim? A monster? A- his train of thought skipped as Allura’s hand slid down from his shoulder to tangle with his own. A Paladin? A Paladin. He was a Paladin, her Paladin, and only death could change that. He gave her hand a gentle squeeze, and she squeezed back with a smile.

**Author's Note:**

> I gotta say, “An alien flesh geode which fed on a planet’s energy like a parasite unless it was regularly supplied with life energy by the inhabitants” is definitely one of the weirder sentences I’ve written in my fanfic career.


End file.
